Whirlpool Rep To Offer Update On Fort Smith Site Cleanup

A Whirlpool representative plans to meet with city leaders Tuesday to discuss progress related to a cleanup plan targeting contamination underneath the former Fort Smith plant and a nearby residential area.

Soil and groundwater at the plant and groundwater in the neighborhood are contaminated with trichloroethylene, known as TCE, which is linked to an increased risk of cancer, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The substance was used at Whirlpool as a degreasing solvent between the late 1960s and early 1980s before it was discovered to be harmful, according to the company. The Fort Smith plant closed in June 2012.

“Whirlpool remains committed to staying in Fort Smith to work with (the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality), area residents and the city of Fort Smith to keep the community informed about all major developments until this project is complete,” Whirlpool spokesman Jeff Noel wrote in a letter to the city.

Noel is scheduled to meet with the Fort Smith Board of Directors during a study session that begins at noon Tuesday at the Fort Smith Public Library, 3201 Rogers Ave.

Whirlpool’s long-term, state-approved cleanup plan calls for covering impacted soil on the plant property with asphalt, natural attenuation, treatment of groundwater with a chemical oxidant and various monitoring techniques.

Another topic on Tuesday’s agenda is discussion of a “citizen service improvement plan.”

City Administrator Ray Gosack describes it in a memo as a “seven‐point plan to improve service to the citizens of Fort Smith.”

“The plan will focus on improvements for development and building projects,” he wrote. “However, elements of the plan will help improve all city services.”

He goes on to state the goal “is to provide exceptional service every time someone contacts the city of Fort Smith.”